This invention generally relates to replaceable printing device components, and more particularly, to replaceable printing device components having a memory.
Several types of printing devices, such as printers, copiers, facsimile machines, etc., have replaceable components installed in them that have a life cycle during which the component is functional. When the functional life cycle ends, the component is replaced with a new component. Examples of replaceable components for printing devices include ink cartridges, toner cartridges, ribbon cartridges, fusers, photoconductors, drums, and the like.
After a replaceable component has reached the end of its functional life cycle, it can be recycled. Recycling a component involves the user returning a depleted component to the manufacturer at the end of the component""s life cycle. Then, the manufacturer can dispose of the component safely. In addition, there may be parts from the depleted component that the manufacturer may salvage for use in new components and thereby reduce the amount of waste. Toner cartridges can also be refurbished by the original manufacturer or by another toner cartridge vendor so that the toner cartridge may be re-used.
Cartridges can be manufactured with cartridge memory integrated therein or incorporated into a cartridge label. This memory is used to store printer related data that the printer reads to determine certain printing parameters and communicate information to the user. For example, the memory may store the model number of the cartridge so that the printer may recognize the cartridge as one which is compatible with that particular printer. Additionally, by way of example, the cartridge memory may store the number of pages that can be expected to be printed from the cartridge during a life cycle, thereby allowing the printer to determine how many additional pages may be printed by the cartridge.
This advancement in technology can be used together with the recycling process to provide a printer component manufacturer an opportunity to gather direct feedback from customers about how the component has been used.
Such information is very valuable to printer component manufacturers because it helps them to understand the conditions under which their products are used. This information can then be used in designing and manufacturing new printing devices to operate more efficiently under such conditions.
Currently, printer manufacturers rely on methods such as customer surveys to gather the information. However, customer surveys, if presented to the customer in written form, are only completed and returned by a small percentage of customers. The printer manufacturer cannot rely on such a small sampling as being completely accurate with regard to all, or almost all, printer users.
Customer surveys can be undertaken by personally interviewing customers as to the conditions under which their printers operate. Besides being cost prohibitive in most circumstances, the customer may not know certain informationxe2x80x94such as temperature and humidity extremesxe2x80x94under which their printer operates.
A printing system utilizes memory integrated into a replaceable component to store printing device usage information. The manufacturer or remanufacturer retrieves the information when the component is returned for recycling. The information is used to optimize printers and printer components for use in such conditions.
During operation of the printer, the printer can be configured to record certain usage information in the memory of the component. The information can include the length of print jobs performed by the printer. The explicit length of each print job can be recorded, or the printer may be configured to simply keep a record of how many short, medium and long print jobs are performed utilizing the component, relative to a certain page count for each length of print job.
The printer may also be equipped with temperature and humidity sensors which monitor environmental conditions during operation of the printer. Temperature and humidity extremes measured during printer operation can be recorded in the component memory.
A printer manufacturer may also wish to know what brands of replaceable components are used in the printer. The printer or the cartridge may be configured to detect the name brand of each replaceable component used in the printer and record this information in the component memory. The printer manufacturer can use this information to address marketing deficiencies which may be discovered upon analysis of the information.
The above enumeration is not meant to limit the type of information that may be recorded in the component memory. Other such information may include a job complexity rating for each print job, the time that is required to print each print job, or any other similar usage date.
When the component is returned to the manufacturer for recycling, the usage information is read from the component memory before the component is recycled. The data obtained from the component may be utilized in design, manufacture and marketing of subsequent printers manufactured and/or sold by the manufacturer.